Who We Are

We are Full Circle Compost Service, a local composting service in Arlington, MA run by high school students. Our mission is to provide accessible composting to Arlington residents. We provide residents with everything needed to start composting and engage with the community through local events and bake sales. We are completely donation-based, and all proceeds fuel the growth of our service.

Check out the survey we designed that matches residents with a compost service that works best for them. On December 21st, our business shut down, and so we are no longer offering compost services..

Our Story

When we saw all of the waste in Arlington, we wondered why there had to be so much in our trash, especially since there were so many different composting programs in Arlington available for residents. Then we realized that some people either didn’t want to compost, didn’t know how to compost, hadn’t started to compost yet, or didn’t want to pay for a service or composter.

So in 2021, we decided to help Arlington out with it’s food waste problem and begin our own compost service. First, we got our team together and created our logo. Then, we distributed flyers in hopes that people would be interested. We decided to start our service in a pilot phase. During our pilot phase, we reached out to some successful eco entrepreneurs, such as another small composting service in California, and Ben Barkan, who started his own gardening service here in Arlington.

In 2022, we created our website to expand our service and educate people in the Middlesex County about composting.

In 2024, Full Circle Compost became an award winning service, wining 3rd place in Project Green Schools' Innovating for the Future competition.

We no longer offer services.

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Our Former Service

We used to work with residents to arrange a compost pick-up schedule and collect food waste like eggshells, fruit peels, and leftovers at the arranged time. Then we'd carry it over to our local compost pickup bin, Feed FIDO. We designed our service to have payments built on a sliding scale. This means that people could choose to pay anywhere from zero to seven dollars each month. As a result, our service was technically free for anyone who wants it to be!

We offered our pick-up on Thursdays, Saturdays, or Sundays, either weekly or bi-weekly. Below is an image of the bins we offer for all of our clients. Bins were free with signing-up!

Other Services

Learn more about other services here or take our survey to get matched with a composting option that works best for you.

our service below

Our Bins
(free with signing up!)

Our Thoughts about Compost

In general, people often overlook composting because it seems like just another chore to do but it is really important. In being a part of Full Circle, I’ve leaned a lot about the responsibilities that come with providing a service for people and I love getting the opportunity to do something good for the planet while being with my friends and having fun. More specific to composting, I’ve been able to learn about where our local compost goes and how big of an impact such a small change in your daily routine can have.

Elise

A lot of people might not know a lot about composting. They might see it as more difficult than it actually is and not really know how it works. It’s surprising to see the amount of compost we receive especially with the small amount of clients we currently have, but it's great to realize that all of that was previously just being thrown away and can now be composted. Composting is definitely an easy way to help the environment. It isn't too much of a hassle, especially if you sign up for a program and are able to find a service that best works for you.

Ivy

I haven’t seen a lot of interest in composting, probably because it’s something that people need to go out of their way to learn about. A lot of the information is easy to get, people just don’t know that it’s out there. It’s also just another task that people don’t want to have to do. But I have seen a lot of interest in compost for people who know more about it, who are friends with people who compost, and generally have access to more information about it. That's why it is so important that we reach as many people as possible and can get them started with composting!

Julia

I’ve seen a lot of interest in composting because basically everyone on my street composts. I think the cost holds people back because the free drop-off bins might be inconvenient, and the pick up services are pricy. One other thing holding people back could be the complexity of the system. There’s a lot of different competing services to chose from and many different ways to compost. With Full Circle Compost I feel like we can help to solve some of those problems and get more people composting!

Clara

People tend to hold back from composting because they think it'll be a pain and feel it's easier to just throw everything in the trash. In reality, it’s just another bin, and it is easy and fast to sort food waste into. People don't realize how much of a difference they could make if they had one. Composting is a really great way to reduce your carbon footprint right inside your own home. I'm so honored to lead this service that provides equitable composting and opens peoples' eyes to the value of reducing food waste.

Miriam

Many people aren’t as focused on composting as recycling, but recycling isn’t actually doing much after China and other countries stopped accepting most U.S recycling. This means that composting is more important than ever and more people should be getting involved. As a composter myself and as a person who picks up compost, I have seen first-hand how composting makes people feel. It gives me a sense of pride to be doing something good for the environment from my own home and to be helping others do the same. I feel like composting on a personal level is like a little checkmark for me doing my weekly green task.

Greta